*sigh* I'm not even gonna bother making an excuse. Three months later, and now I update!? Ugh. Thank you for bearing my tardiness guys.
Hiccup
After my first… incident in the ring, escape to the cove became harder. Way harder. With a few neat tricks that I learned from Toothless and Dragon, I was able to stay out of trouble with the arena dragons, but those neat tricks were not subtle. I couldn't just use one and get away with it. Nope, people noticed. And boy did they notice.
I would put a fight in the ring to an abrupt end only to realize that there were spectators. At first it was only a few, two or three maybe, but more gathered as word spread. They would become clamorous and sometimes cheer; during that time, I'd slip away as fast as I could.
I took my usual place alone at one of the tables in the Great Hall only for other people to come up to me with a slew of questions. They were all blown away, what with seeing Hiccup the Useless doing something right for a change. I thought it was downright uncomfortable.
One of the few who didn't fawn over me was Astrid. I should be grateful, but I'm really not because the looks she'd give me were unsettling. Suspicious.
In the ring, her eyes would burn a hole into the back of my head, and at the forge she'd watch my every movement like a predator on the hunt. I couldn't even walk to my house without eventually feeling her eyes on me. She's probably the only person on the island who's taking my sudden progress with a grain of salt, and it's unnerving.
And then there's Mom. Oh sure, she was happy for me, but Mom's cunning. She doesn't see things as they are on the surface; to her, the unexplainable can be explained if people would bother to look deeper. After I decided to start having my meals at home, Mom started joining me. She'd ask questions I couldn't answer, and she was relentless. Keeping Mom at bay was a chore.
Odin, give me the strength of a thousand warriors. Or at least one.
Then came the night another problem was added to my plate.
Gobber had come by that evening to join us for dinner (because there was no way I was suffering Mom's cooking alone), and he had stayed long after to keep Mom company. I was up in the loft, using minimal light to read the Dragon Manual again. My eyes were tiring after reading the same page on the Whispering Death for the seventh time. Words blended together until I finally gave up and flipped the page.
This couldn't go on, I finally admitted. Nothing in Bork's notes or in the Dragon Manual was giving me any clues about Toothless draconic problem. There were no other resources available to me either.
I growled in frustration, hating myself so much. Ugh! Who was I kidding? I'm a blacksmith's apprentice not a-a-a shaman or a mage. What did I know about the supernatural?
From my bedside I stared at the wall across from me. The warm light of the fire pulsed like a beating heart. What would happen if I just went to Mom and blurted out, "Toothless is a dragon!"? I thought about that a lot. I could just go down the stairs right now, and whisper it in her ear, and wait for her reaction.
Toothless would kill me.
With a defeated groan, I flopped back on my bed. I watched the little candle next to my bed sweat wax. It's tiny flame danced with the breeze coming from my window. It was hypnotically entertaining while I forced my head to clear.
Meanwhile downstairs, Mom and Gobber's voices rose. Their words filtered in my ears—particularly "Toothless" and my name. My eyes trailed over to the ledge when the voices abruptly cut out. Curious, I blew out the candle and crept to the edge of the loft.
The fire downstairs was still alight, and it hummed a crackling tune as Gobber prodded at the fuel. Across from him, Mom was hunched over the table, probably patching up some clothes. It was hard to see her face from my place in the loft, but I could tell that Mom was upset. Her finger work was quick but a little too jerky, and she didn't even try to look up at Gobber.
I strained to hear the conversation until I finally picked up a few of Mom's words.
"…think I don't know that!?"
"I know ye do," Gobber said calmly. "That's why I'm try'n to tell ye that…maybe it's time to start consider'n the worst."
Mom scoffed and tossed aside her work before getting out of her chair to pace. I ducked back when she looked toward the loft, hoping that she hadn't seen me. When she didn't call me out, I crept back to my previous spot.
"Ye said so yerself," Gobber continued on, "'e wasn't doing well. To remain missing all this time…I can't see what else could be keep'n him."
"Toothless. Is not. Dead," Mom hissed, desperate to make him understand.
"And what makes ye so sure?"
The silence hung in the air, and I held my breath in anticipation. No wonder Gobber waited until I was supposedly asleep to have this talk. But still… I only now realized what kind of situation Mom was caught in.
We should have told her, Toothless, I thought.
"I'd know," Mom finally replied. "I'd just know it; if he were dead…"
It got painfully quiet after that. I peeked over the ledge to watch as Mom fed some logs to the ravenous flames. She refused to back down from her stance, defiant. Finally the silence was broken.
"I can still recall the day ye brought him home," Gobber said almost wistfully. He chuckled. "Rowdiest child a've ever laid eyes on. Made Hiccup look like a darling by comparison."
I bit back an indignant "Hey!"
Mom giggled too, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with him. "He certainly never made things easy."
"I'll say." Gobber downed the last of his drink. "Must've gotten it from the wilder end of his gene pool."
Mom muttered something under her breath, but dismissed it when Gobber asked.
She sighed out a breathy chuckle. "Sometimes things got so rough I'd wonder what I'd gotten myself into."
"Well no one ever asked ye to raise two wee ones at once. Keep'n 'im was all your own madness at work."
"A lovely way to put it."
"But ye don't deny it."
"And I wouldn't want it any different." She sighed as wistful memories of days past probably flashed through her mind. "No, I'll never regret keeping him. Never."
"Aye." A pause. "Out of curiosity, has he ever asked about them? His parents, I mean. His homeland even?"
I didn't need to hear Mom's reply to know the answer. I once asked him the same thing, and Toothless said he'd ask when it was actually important. I don't know if that was pride talking or if he really didn't care, but I had to wonder: Could it be important?
Even after I decided to call it a night, I was still thinking about it. Mom had never exactly told us what had killed the people of Toothless's native island. All we knew was that his parents were dead. But what killed them?
More chilling was the question: Were they really dead?
At this point, I was willing to believe anything. I had the Dragon Manual memorized word for word, and all other resources were either scarce or nonexistent. The answers weren't here on Berk. Could they be on another island entirely?
It was a stupid idea. I had a better chance of getting past the Hairy Scary Librarian of the Meathead Public Library. Traveling to an island for a wild goose chase was not just stupid; it was impossible, I reasoned.
But what if it has the answers I'm looking for?
My internal debate raged on all night, and I tossed and turned in my bed for hours. By the time the sun blinked over the horizon however, my mind was already drafting out the note I'd be leaving for Mom and Dad to find after I was gone.
The only problem? I had to find the island first. Granted, I could ask Mom directly, but that created too many problems. If I only knew the island's name, or at least it's general area, I could track it down on the map.
I spent my entire day thinking about it. No angle seemed to work. There was always a hole in every idea, something that would create more questions than I could answer.
I was even thinking about this while in the middle of Dragon Training. I nearly got blasted by the Gronckle. Thankfully I managed to pacify it in time. After I escaped from training, ignoring the curious looks I got along the way, I considered another option. Would Dragon know anything about Toothless's island?
Toothless
Stormcutter really picked a crappy day to disappear out of the blue. The night before, some animal had been making this obnoxious hum, and it wouldn't shut up! I didn't get any sleep, and that left me extremely grouchy by sunrise. The Stormcutter's disappearing trick was the tip of the iceberg to my foul-tempered mind. May the gods have mercy on any animal that decided to cross me while I was in my mood.
I thought that walking in the woods would give me a chance to calm down. It. Was not. Working. The weather, which was clearly forecasting bad weather, wasn't helping me either. The sky was dark and cloudy, and nobody, save for one stupid, bad tempered dragon-boy, would be caught dead out here. It wasn't windy, but I wouldn't be surprised if the rain got stormy later on.
As I wandered through a thicket, a bird overhead burst out of the trees, flapping furiously. I watched with mild interest as it fluttered away. By the time the bird was completely out of sight, I realized that my wings had uncoiled without my permission. My eyes widened, and I quickly snapped them back in place, growling to myself.
Trying to tamper down my ire—honestly, it was getting irrational—I tuned in to my surroundings. I could hear scuttling animals and twittering birds, all looking for shelter. I could also detect a flurry of smells from the stench of another animal's kill to the scent of oncoming rain. The forest was still teaming with life, enough to distract me for a while at least.
Okay so maybe this walk was kinda helping. In the past, I can remember wandering around the forest whenever something I needed space—even before all this happened. I would do it for the odd comfort that the atmosphere gave me. I had to admit though, this new level of awareness was a perk to my situation.
Suddenly, I heard the familiar sound of muttering. As soon as I realized who it was, my childish side got the better of me. I grinned as I slunk into the nearest thicket, carefully trying to keep quiet. This had to be the most immature thing I could pull, but godsdammit, I needed a break!
However, before I could burst out of my hiding place, I suddenly heard another voice I doubt either of us had expected.
"Hiccup!?"
Hiccup
"Hiccup!?"
I swear to the gods, I totally did not jump or make any undignified squeaks in surprise!
Astrid used her axe to cut away some foliage to make a path. She swiped her bangs our of her face before giving me a hard glare. "What on earth are you doing out here?" she asked as she finally caught up to me.
"Astrid! Hey, Astrid. Hi um—"
"I asked you a question."
"Oh uh…" I looked around, and my eyes locked on to the black silhouette tucked inside a nearby thicket. Bright green eyes glowed because of the contrast in lighting. My eyes widened. Oh shoot.
"What?" Astrid's eyes followed mine before trailing towards Toothless's general direction.
I quickly got in the way and asked, "S-So what brings you out here?" Her annoyed glare made me shrink back immediately.
She crossed her arms and looked at me suspiciously. "I was training and saw you trip over a log." Heat creeped up my neck, permanently burning my face a bright red. "Now what about you?"
"Me?"
"What are you doing out here?"
I discreetly glanced behind her, searching for Toothless. He was being rock silent, but nowhere near safe.
"I-I'm just, you know, enjoying nature. Just normal…guy… stuff." That was lame even to my own ears.
"I see," she said even though her eyes said Don't give me that crap.
One thing led to another, but eventually Astrid trapped me within an interrogation that was hidden under the guise of a casual conversation. "Do you come out here often?" "You've been doing better in the ring lately." "How did you get that dragon back in its cage?" "Do you always act this weird?"
Not the most comfortable situation I've even been in. On the other hand, I took advantage of the situation, and used it to lead Astrid away from Toothless's hiding place. The process was painfully slooooow, but I turned her persistence against her. She kept up with me only so she wouldn't loose me or her chance to get answers.
I only felt a little guilty.
"So what are you really doing out here?" Astrid finally asked as we entered into a clearing.
I sighed. "Nothing," I ground out.
"Don't lie to me!" Her sudden grip on my shoulder was both surprising and painful. I was forced to face her as she glared me down. "You always come out here every evening since training began. Don't look so surprised! I—" She ranted on, but I wasn't listening anymore.
As nervous as I was, my eyes darted everywhere, looking at anything but her. There was no way I could tell Astrid Hofferson of all people what's going on. Toothless and Astrid weren't enemies, but they weren't friends either. Forget my feelings for her; Toothless would be livid if she knew!
"Are you even listening anymore!?"
Snapping back into reality, I held my hands up defensively and took a few steps back. "Sorry, wh—" CRRRRKKKK! "AAAH!"
"HICCUP!"
The slip was disorienting. One minute my feet were on solid ground, and then I was suddenly tumbling into darkness. I was pounded on the way down, and my face got scraped up a little. I lost all perception of up and down until I jolted to a halt at the bottom.
I groaned as my everywhere stung. I spit dirt out of my mouth as I heard Astrid screaming my name from the mouth of the hole. Wait...a hole?
"I'm okay!" I shouted. Kinda.
After I looked around, I wasn't so sure. Yep... I thought to myself. I'm in a hole. Sort of. This hole had a series of tunnels, but no apparent exit. What on earth? Looking up, I could see Astrid's silhouette against the sunlight.
"So uh…what just happened?" I asked dumbly.
I could practically feel her roll her eyes. "Can you get out?"
"Doubt it." I replied. I got on my feet and brushed off the dirt from my sleeves and pants. Judging by eye, there was no way I was climbing out of this hole.
"I'll get help."
"No!" I shouted before she could leave. Her head jerked down to my general direction, incredulous.
"Hiccup—"
"Just get a rope, and drag me out. Bring Fishlegs if you must," I added quickly, unwilling to explain why I didn't want any certain adults noticing my trips out here.
But before she could reply, We both heard a sudden growl rumble through the cavern. I froze. Astrid and I were dead silent as we listened carefully. Again. There it was. CRASH! The floor beneath me gave out before I was flung upwards. My head hit something hard before everything suddenly went dark.
Toothless
Things had gone from bad to incredibly life threatening! too quickly for my liking. I ran as fast as I could, following the sound of an incredibly pissed off dragon. By the time I found the source, I caught Astrid leading the dragon away from an unconscious Hiccup. The first thing I noticed about the dragon was the spikes. It had the body of a snake and it's eyes were white, almost unseeing. I cursed. That giant ball and chain of spikes was a Whispering Death! It was almost twice my length and flat-out furious! I'd bet anything that Astrid was not geared to fight that thing!
But damn, was she doing a good job. Her movements were fluid, and each swing of her axe was meant to kill. Unfortunately the dragon was faster, and it tunneled underground multiple times. It would never attack her head on, but it was clearly trying to scare her away by getting dangerously close. With a powerful war cry, Astrid threw her axe at it when it surfaced again, aiming for the eyes. She missed by a centimeter!
As she rolled out of the way of an attack, I ran over to Hiccup who was lying on the ground still unconscious. I nudged him but he didn't respond, sending a spark of fear down my spine. Astrid, who had yet to notice me, ripped her axe out of the earth with a grunt while I sniffed him over. The metallic pang to his scent made a rush of emotion smash away all reasoning. The fight between Astrid and the Whispering Death must have continued on for only a few seconds before I jumped in.
I tackled the dragon, barely registering the pricks against my thick hide. The dragon screeched as we rolled away from Astrid, who froze in shock. The Whispering Death threw me off and my body uprooted an unfortunate shrub or three along the way. I was on my feet faster than my mind could process. I was probably running on an adrenaline high by now, but I didn't care. My senses were screaming Attack! Attack! Attack! and I was much too eager to comply.
It swooped upwards, but I tackled it before it could burrow into the ground. It shrieked when I raked my claws down its body, and then it threw me into a tree. By the time I shook away the spinning, it had tunneled in deep underground. I was vaguely aware of the growling that was rumbling out of my own throat. My heightened hearing was suddenly being put to actual use, searching for the tell-tale sign of the surfacing dragon. From my peripheral vision, I caught Astrid with Hiccup. He was aware enough to be moving, but he was leaning heavily on her for support. That angry sensation boiled over at the sight.
Vibrations under my feet told me that I'd soon be getting my much needed stress relief. It shot out from under my feet; I was barely able to get out of the way. Instinct was my ally here, and my roar, the manifestation of my anger, seemed to get the message across. I was it's enemy. It lunged only for me to tackle it head on, and I clamped down hard with my teeth.
The taste of iron filled my mouth, satisfying my revenge, but for good measure, I bit down a little harder. It slammed me to the ground several times until I finally let go and flew up too high for me to reach. It's mouth filled with gas, ready to use its firepower. Apparently, this fight had gone from defense of territory to something more personal. To say I was sorry would have been a flat out lie. I tensed, ready to get out of the way, but it was a waste. Before the Whispering Death could ignite its fire, a burst of distorted fire was shot from behind me.
The fire missed the Whispering Death, but it was enough to stop the fight. A large shadow loomed over me before the newcomer could land between us. It was Stormcutter. The doubled-winged dragon had both wings spread to shield me from the Whispering Death's sight. Stormcutter roared, receiving a screech in reply from the Whispering Death.
They exchanged a series of roars and growls. It took a few minutes for the roaring to temper down between the two. Subtle head gestures suggested that they were arguing over me. I could hear Stormcutter's exasperation! Towards me! Even though my mind was calming down gradually, I was still indignant. I voiced my irritation with a series of barks. Stormcutter turned and growled at me in reply. And I mean an I'm-mad-at-you-young-man kind of growl! I was so shocked, I didn't even reply.
Finally the Whispering Death roared, probably in my general direction, before tunneling into the ground. The earth shook underneath before slowly ebbing back into a standstill. Once Stormcutter let down his wings, I scurried over to the hole that the attacking dragon had left behind. My nose twitched as it's lingering stench filled my nostrils, making me sneeze. I glared into the hole one more time and snorted before walking away.
Only to come face to face with a very stern Stormcutter. He wasn't angry per se, but he was not pleased either.
I tilted my head. What?
He growled in reply, his warm breath puffing onto my face.
Grumbling he turned away, clearly expecting me to follow. He didn't wait to check if I was coming either. I felt a cross between confused and guilty. He was upset alright. But could he blame me!? How much of that had he actually seen? Had he even smelled Hiccup's blood!? Dammit why the hel was his opinion so important to me anyway?
I followed, puzzled as hell before I remembered.
Hiccup!
Once again, thanks for not ditching me yet, guys.
Reply to a Guest reviewer from back in chapter 12: First off, sorry for not replying in the last chapter. My fevered brain had told me that I'd pasted in my reply, but three days later and whaddya know? I didn't! Okay so on to the reply.
Thank you so much; I feel so honored! This isn't the first time I've merged cannon plot with a spin of my own, so I'm glad to hear that I still know what I'm doing! I myself am rather iffy about transformation fics (and can you blame me? There are a ton out there that kinda...are meh), but a transformation fic was essentially what spawned in my brain so I had to write it. Have you read Umbreytingu by Elfpen or A Recipe for Disaster by Arcawolf? Those two are both amazing transformation fics even though Arcawolf's fic kinda sounds iffy if you're only judging by the description. However in reality it's great; I got a bit of inspiration from reading that one in particular.
—Tenchiko
